A Writer’s Journey to Finding Her Personal Monopoly
There is an orchestra playing in my head. With various instruments producing their own sounds and beats. A constant stream of musical notes. But there is a problem: it has no rhythm.
The music in my head is a medley of ideas shaped by my diverse interests and experiences. Each idea plays its own tune independently of the others, resulting in a mismatch of sounds.
I am on a mission to orchestrate these sounds into a beautiful symphony, and my tool of choice is a pen rather than a baton.
This symphony will be my unique voice on the internet — my personal monopoly.
The Concept of Personal Monopoly
My first encounter with the word ‘monopoly’ was in an Economics class in high school. From the first lecture, I was sold on the idea. I found it fascinating that an individual or entity can have complete control over a market, such that others have no share at all.
Just the thought of having that level of authority got me floating on cloud nine. I imagined the impact I would have on the world. My greatest desire has always been to make a significant contribution to the world. You know, leave an indelible footprint in the sands of time. So you can see why such authority matters to me.
Fast forward some years later, I joined Write of Passage. After a rigorous five weeks of brainstorming, strategizing, and eye-opening conversations about writing, I emerged with an entirely new outlook on monopolies. I began to see monopoly as something available to everyone, rather than a privilege reserved for a select few blessed with the wisdom of Solomon.
The term “Personal Monopoly,” was coined by David Perell. He describes it as the unique intersection of your ideas, interests, skills, personality traits, and knowledge that nobody else can compete with. It is what makes you uniquely you.
Amid all the hullabaloo on the internet, getting your voice heard can be difficult. It’s like trying to give a speech in front of a crowd of angry, screaming protesters. You can scream at the top of your lungs and still not be heard. This is where a personal monopoly comes in. It is that authoritative voice that says, “Hey! Shut up and listen, I have something to say.” Your personal monopoly allows you to be seen and heard on the internet.
Talk about an aha moment!
How I define my personal monopoly
When I think of my personal monopoly, I picture an intersection between the different facets of my life. Kind of similar to a Japanese concept called ikigai, which means your ‘reason for being’ or your life’s purpose.
The “Ikigai Venn Diagram” which was born when entrepreneur Marc Winn merged the Purpose Venn diagram with Ikigai, describes ikigai as an intersection between what you love, what you’re good at, what you can be paid for, and what the world needs.
Finding that elusive intersection
In theory, finding the intersection seems pretty easy: Make a list of the things you love, slap on what you’re good at, and spice it up with what you can be paid for. Then, find out how these things can fulfill a need in the world… And boom! You’ve found your purpose.
I mean, that should be a walk in the park for me. Really. Except for one thing: I’m a Jill of all trades. A creative junkie.
Over the years, I’ve bounced from one creative venture to the next. From beauty to fashion, event management, sales, catering, teaching, design, writing — you name it, I’ve done it.
From my very first job as a sales assistant at one of the world’s largest bakeries, I’ve gone on to run my own culinary business, try my hands at fashion design (even though I only ever made clothes for myself, my mom, and a few friends), work as a hairstylist, run an online culinary school, become a digital product designer, etc.
The list goes on.
Most people would describe me as multitalented. But I don’t call it talent; rather, I see it as an obsession with learning, attempting new things, and flexing my creative muscles while fulfilling a need.
So, it can be pretty tricky to map me and my truckload of skills and interests into a Venn diagram.
However, the beauty of being multifaceted is that it makes for a much more unique intersection since there will only be a few others with such a combination. It’s like being a cocktail in a world that’s packed full of fruit juices.
Each new creative venture I’ve undertaken exposed me to a new way of thinking. From serving customers to running a culinary business to designing digital products, I have acquired a variety of mental models.
Now, my goal as a writer is to find the sweet spot where my accumulated experiences and ideas intersect. So here’s what I’m doing: I’m relying on the wisdom of crowds to help me pinpoint that intersection.
And I’m doing that through writing, publishing, listening for feedback, and making constant iterations based on feedback.
Article by article, essay by essay, I’m sharing my ideas with the word and fine-tuning these ideas to bring some rhythm to this medley of sounds in my head.
And while I wait for that perfect symphony where the sounds harmonize, I will focus on the beauty of the individual sounds that make up this orchestra.
Many thanks to my special someone and the folks at Write of Passage (Vangelis Fotiades, Leo Ariel, Randy Garman, Ivy Xu, Angie Wang, Rik van den Berge, and Melissa Menke) for their feedback on early drafts of this piece.
